One thing we haven't been able to live without is The Miracle Blanket. This blanket is amazing. I swear it helps her sleep better (and prevents her from clawing up her face while she's sleeping). It looks a bit like a medieval torture device, but she loves it. To prove to everyone that she does enjoy her swaddle here is a pic of the happy Baby Burrito. I'm hoping that we haven't done permanent damage to her, but we'll know in a few years.
So my mom discovered this crazy tub, the TummyTub, while watching the Today Show and ordered one right away for Amelia. It's basically a glorified paint bucket, but Amelia does enjoy it. The only problem is that she has figured out how to stand up while in the tub. If you turn your back for a second she's on her feet and trying to grab stuff from around the sink (to put in her mouth of course). She's had lots of fun in her new tub. I think her favorite part is that her face is closer to the water and bubbles making it easier to get a snack while bathing.
It doesn't matter what you read as long as you read, right?? I hope so since Amelia has taken to "reading" magazines and I usually only have People or Us Weekly around the house. She apparently likes to catch up on her gossip (and is very concerned about Jon and Kate's relationship status). She loves to turn the pages and, of course, put them in her mouth where all things go. I love her expressions. Her face says a thousand words.
This month Amelia added two new skills to her repertoire... smiling for the camera (finally) and sitting up. Finally we have some pictures of Amelia where she isn't giving the camera a blank stare. It still takes quite some effort to distract her from the shiny object. Usually we sing Old McDonald or the Smurfs theme song, which produce instant smiles. We're still working to master the art of sitting up, but she's doing pretty well. When she gets tired she will stick her arms out for support, but she's gotten much more stable these days.
This past month my mom, Amelia, and I headed down to Orlando for a week. I was coaching and I brought mom along to help out with Amelia while I was in the gym. It was a great week and I think that mom and Amelia had some fun while I was out. Mom was nice enough to take pics of Amelia having fun without me. My team ended up taking 5th, but we only lost to one team and they ended up winning the whole tournament. So really we were second. Amelia also took her first dip in a swimming pool. As you can see she was quite prepared with her sun hat and glasses. She loved the water and spent most of the time drinking and kicking. I'm planning to sign her up for swimming lessons in August. We'll see how that goes.
Amelia turned 4 months old this month. I can't believe it... Time has literally flown by. Amelia loves to be out and has been such a good kid. Zach insists that we shouldn't press our luck with another one since she's been such a breeze. He's convinced our next kid will be a terror. I'm thinking that Amelia is just waiting for the right moment to really go wild. This month has been so much fun and she's developed a funny little personality.
So I decided to take the pediatricians advice and let her cry it out instead of rocking my little princess to sleep for her naps and bed time. Needless to say, Amelia had different plans. I decided at 12 weeks I would give this a shot. I put her in her bed Monday for her morning nap sleepy, but awake (as instructed) and she proceeded to cry for the next two hours! I fed her, we played, and then I put her back in her bed sleepy, but awake for her mid-afternoon nap... and she screamed for the next two hours. This went on for 3 days. She didn't get more than a catnap any of those days and seriously screamed all day. I finally gave up Wednesday afternoon and rocked her to sleep (pic below is after she was rocked to sleep... screaming pic is before I rocked her). Two good things came out of this effort: she figured out how to roll over (she got that mad) and she started sleeping through the night. I figured will try the cry it out thing again in a few weeks, but I had about all of the screaming I can handle for this month. Maybe my child is defective or she just knows that I'll eventually give in. That was our first battle of the wills and I lost. Not a good start.
This is a tribute to Amelia's Aunt Tara. Amelia loves her Australian maraca. She's now realized that, not only does it make sounds, it's a weapon to be used against Mom and Dad. She gets really excited and just flings it. Watch out. As you can see here she still hates the camera and always gets that blank stare when I pull out the camera (maybe it has something to do with the the red light that shines on her face when I turn the camera on).
Amelia turned three months old this month and is really starting to get a little personality. She loves her Jumparoo. Sophie the giraffe, and talking. She still hates to go to sleep and can't stand tummy time or the camera. We've had some major accomplishments this month as well. She figured out how to roll over and, drum roll please, she's sleeping through the night! That was the best Mother's Day gift ever. One night (at 12 weeks exactly), she decided she was going to sleep through the night. I woke up around 6 a little panicked because I hadn't heard from her all night. I made Zach go check to see if she was breathing. So for the last 3 weeks she's given us the gift of sleep. I never thought that it would happen. I'm still a little uneasy about not getting that reassurance that she's still breathing in the middle of the night, but I bought one of those sensors that goes in her bed. Yes, I know, I'm paranoid. It's fantastic though and sounds a loud alarm if it doesn't sense her breathing after 20 seconds. I'm sure Zach thinks I'm nuts, but it helps me sleep. Amelia has also found her voice. She loves to "talk" and will seem to carry on a conversation. I caught some of it on video, but Zach hasn't figured out how to get the video up here yet. Maybe one day.
Within the last week Amelia's hair has taken a turn (potentially for the worse) and is no longer soft, brownish-blonde... it's RED. We still can't figure out exactly how this happened. It's a recessive trait for crying out loud... could we be both be carriers?? After days of my mom commenting on her pretty red hair and me denying it, I've finally given in. It didn't help that every stranger we've run into in the last week has said something about her red hair. Even at lunch on Thursday Zach and I were eating minding our own business and this old man asked us if the mailman had red hair. I guess there's no more denying it... we've got a red headed stepchild on our hands.
One habit we've managed to break in the last few weeks is the pinkie. She was addicted to the pinkie since she came home, but we're finally free and no longer have to walk around with our finger in her mouth. She would rarely take a pacifier. We bought every kind they sell at Babies-R-Us... from Avent to Mam, we tried them all. Then one evening when Alan and Rachel were here I got out the Soothie and she took it right away. It was fantastic. She still isn't a big fan and only wants it when she's ready to go to sleep. It's the small things.
Another first for Amelia is the dreaded boob lip. This new trick started a few weeks ago and she pulls it out any time she's not getting her way. It's proceeded by stomping of her feet and a few shouts (no joke). I didn't realize that tantrums could start so young. How do you teach a 10 week old not to throw a tantrum? I thought only undisciplined children behaved this way, but I'm learning that they can just be born this way. I snapped the end of one of her boob lips here just before the feet and wails started.
We have done so many new things in the last few weeks... sleeping in our crib, taking a pacifier, smiling, cooing and being big enough to ride in our Bob (sort of). She's still a bit small and it's a whole lot of stroller, but she fits. She loves the Bob and it's perfect for our neighborhood. We have sidewalks, but they haven't been repaired since the late 60s so it's much like off-roading. Here are some pics of her first walk in the Bob.
Here are some pics of Amelia taking her naps. We think she's pretty cute when she sleeps and it's about the only time she's lying still and not pedaling. In the last two weeks we've transitioned her to her "big girl bed"... actually, it's just her crib, but it's a big move for us.Occasionally, I will let her nap with me. Not a good habit, but it's a reward for sleeping so well in her bed (at least that's what I tell myself).
Before we moved to her crib she would really only sleep well on a pillow. Not safe, but I was willing to do anything to get an extra hour or two of sleep at night. She hasn't slept on the pillow since she was about 7 weeks old now so we're making progress. I had nightmares of her and this pillow at age 16.
Another favorite activity of Amelia's (we think) is to watch us "cook" and eat while sitting in her Bebe Pod. For those of you that aren't familiar, the Bebe Pod is a squishy, rubber seat that helps your baby sit up. She's still a bit skinny for it, but eventually it will squeeze her and she won't tip from side to side.
Amelia hates getting out of the tub. She loves her baths, but does not like them to be over. She will scream and scream until you put some clothes on her. So one day I decided to pull out the blow dryer to see if that would calm her down. It did. She loved it. She let me style her hair and everything.
I've become a bit obsessed with flat head syndrome and doing whatever I can to ensure that Amelia has a beautiful head in case she decides to shave it one day. I've been looking for activities and places to put her for play that don't include laying on her back. We do tummy time, but she hates it and I can't manage to leave her there for more than 5 minutes so the Jumparoo was the perfect solution. The only problem is that she's still several inches too short. She can't touch the floor yet and she can't see over the top of the seat. Still it's good for her little head and so we spend some time in there every day. I do all of the jumping for her though.
We spent Easter in Newnan with my Mom, Dad, and Wallace. Amelia didn't have the best weekend since she got her first shots that week, but we managed to find a few happy moments (she wasn't screaming) to take some pictures outside. Here she is posing with her Easter Basket. Thank you Grandma and Grandpa Phillips for the book on Easter. Now we all know what Good Friday is all about. She also LOVES her glow worm. She is mesmerized by it's bright face and giant, blue eyes. It's apparently magical and will stop her fussing in an instant.
Two Months Old today! She has changed so much over the last few weeks and is growing like a weed. She is now over 12 lbs and 24 and something inches. She's still long and skinny AND looks just like her dad. I'm beginning to think she got nothing from me. Her newest trick is smiling. She reserves this new skill for special occasions, but I was able to snap a pic of the end of one of her smiles. I love this little outfit she's wearing, but when we took her out people commented on how cute "he" is. I guess green isn't her color.
So, Sarah decided to take a few pictures of Amelia on her One Month Day (how exactly do you word that?). There are two things proven by these shots:
- First, baby clothing from Australia is hands down the cutest stuff available, thanks to Auntie Tara and Uncle Shane
- Second, our precious daughter Amelia is already in full control of communicating her various moods with her facial expressions. Can you label each one?
Finally, I got the load of originals from our friends Charles and Brad who took all those great pictures of Amelia in her first weeks of life. You can download most of them below. Be warned, that is a big download and might take a long time.
amelia_photoshoot_originals.zip
Ok, for those who never saw the other half of the photo shoot photos, here is the link to our friend Brad Curfman's shots of Amelia.
http://www.bradcurfmanphotography.com/
Here is another link to a Picasa album from Charles. Some of these turned out fantastic, some are just plain fun. Enjoy!
Picasa Album - Amelia James Roberts Photo Shoot
First walk in a stroller for Amelia. She bundled up because it wasn't terribly warm, but she slept through it like a champ and seems to enjoy the sunshine even if it isn't super warm. This was probably the first time I ever noticed the terrible sidewalks in our neighborhood, but at least we have them. Stroller suspension is a good addition after all I guess.
So, we have wonderful friends. A few of our camera junkie friends, Charles and Brad, are building up their professional photographer street cred and were nice enough to come practice their baby shooting skills with Amelia. There are uncounted bundles of those coming, but in the mean time here is one pose we attempted. Passed out baby pictures were plentiful. Bare chested father and baby pictures were politely declined, I didn't want the world to know that I am a background model for P90X and Bowflex in my spare time.
Those of you who know me well know that I have a love / hate relationship with Atlanta. What can I say, I long for the West, it is just part of who I am. Atlanta has grown on me quite a bit over the 8 years that Sarah and I have called it home, and on March 1st this year it snowed quite a bit, seemingly as another reminder that it isn't all bad all the time here in the South. It was almost like living in a place with an actual winter, at least for one day. Because it was probably 60 degrees the very next day, I didn't have to remember how much I don't miss shoveling.
Just wanted to point everyone to a friend's Picasa photo gallery with more pictures of Amelia. These were taken by our friends Charles and Lillis who came to visit us in the hospital. They are quite a bit more talented behind the lens than I am so it was nice of them to help out.
Picasa gallery of Amelia
Sorry this has taken a long time, but I finally found some time to share some pictures. Enjoy! There are plenty more where these came from, but these are the current highlights. I will get the others out here probably this weekend. Everyone is still doing well out here, and Amelia is as precious as she looks. It really is true, your baby is the only really cute baby in the world!
